Chapter 1

I'd been working for Customs for five years, but I had to keep my unusually strong sense of smell a secret, so my husband, Zane Shelton, thought I was a regular office employee.

On our third wedding anniversary, I saw Zane at the airport exit, even though he had told me he was working late.

He was fixing Anna's hair for her, smiling at his ex-girlfriend with a gentle smile.

As soon as he saw me, he dropped his hand and instinctively stepped in front of Anna. "Natalie, are you following me? It's only an anniversary. Is it such a big deal if we don't celebrate?

"So, what do you want this time? A bag? Shoes? Jewelry?"

Everyone looked me up and down like I was some kind of joke. I felt humiliated, as if I'd been slapped in public.

I pushed the ultrasound report deeper into my pocket and curled my fingers tightly around each other to stop them from trembling. "I wasn't following you."

Anna smiled sweetly. "Zane, thanks for coming to get me, but your wife comes first, so you should stay with her today.

"And don't be so harsh with a lady. You owe her an apology."

Zane gave me a stiff, halfhearted apology.

I stared at him, stunned. Since when had someone like Zane ever been this willing to listen?

My heart sank.

Anna gave Zane a light pat on the shoulder, took the suitcase from him, and nodded politely at me before heading toward Customs.

A strange smell reached me, and I held out a hand to stop her. "Excuse me. Please open your suitcase. Customs inspection."

Anna stared at me in disbelief.

She was about to speak when Zane let out a mocking laugh. "Natalie, cut the act. Who do you think you are, trying to stop Anna?"

"Zane, your wife is seriously pissed this time," Anna said. She gave a bitter smile and took half a step back, her fingers tightening around the suitcase handle.

Zane stormed over, grabbed my wrist, and dragged me away. "Natalie, you're nothing but an office clerk. How dare you pretend you're a Customs officer?"

Anna looked down, sounding helpless. "Zane, it's okay. Maybe she's only acting like this because she cares about you."

"Care about me?" Zane sneered. "She's simply being jealous."

He turned and glared at me, his jaw tightening as he struggled to keep his anger under control. "Do you know that Anna came back from an outbreak zone?

"She's been risking her life in a war zone, saving people day and night, and what about you? You spend all day looking for discounted handbags and checking up on me.

"You're boring and selfish. You're not worthy of comparison with Anna."

Every word hurt more than I wanted to admit.

The strange smell was intensifying. I knew that if this suitcase got past the exit and into the public area, something terrible could happen.

Seeing that I refused to budge, Anna bit her lip.

She suddenly cried out and went limp, falling right into Zane's arms. "Zane, my hand hurts so bad. I think the old injury from the outbreak zone flared up when she grabbed me."

Zane let go of my wrist at once and pulled Anna into his arms, looking deeply worried. "Anna, are you okay? Do you need to go to the hospital?"

Then he shot me a glare that could kill. "Natalie, if anything happens to Anna, I swear I'll make you pay."

I remained calm despite his anger. "Ms. White, please open your suitcase for inspection."

"Why should she listen to you?" Zane stood up, planting himself in front of Anna, towering over me. "You're not even in uniform. You have no ID, no paperwork, nothing. Who the hell do you think you are?"

He was right.

I was off duty today. I wasn't wearing my uniform, I didn't have my work ID with me, and the only thing that could prove who I was was locked in a secure cabinet at the office.

When I kept quiet, Zane snorted. "Natalie, you always do this. You pick a fight for no reason, then act like the victim when it blows up."

The crowd of onlookers kept growing, and the whispers surged all around me like a tide.

"What's her problem? What does someone else's suitcase have to do with her?"

"She's probably jealous. Her husband's ex comes back, and she can't handle it."

Anna stood up and comfortingly patted Zane's arm. "Don't be mad. Natalie is anxious because she cares about you. I'll open the suitcase and let her check it."

Her gentle voice and graceful attitude made me look like some crazy jealous wife in front of everyone.

Zane's expression softened as he looked at her. "You don't have to listen to her."

Anna smiled and shook her head, reaching for the suitcase's combination lock.

However, I caught the movement of her thumb as she entered the combination. In one quick motion, she pressed a raised button on the side of the suitcase lid.

She was trying to move whatever was hidden inside the suitcase.

My eyes widened in alarm, and I shot out my hand to grab hers. "Don't move."

Zane finally lost his temper. He pushed me hard, sending me stumbling backward into the metal railing.

A dull pain spread through my lower abdomen. I doubled over and clutched my stomach as cold sweat soaked through my back.

Zane didn't spare me a glance. He put his arm around Anna's shoulders, grabbed the suitcase, and strode toward the exit.

"Zane, stop," I called out.

He stopped and turned around with a scoff. "Natalie, what else do you want? Do I really have to say it in front of everyone? I regret marrying you. Is that clear enough?

"I've been regretting it for three years."

He said it in a calm voice, right there in front of everyone.

I took a step back, unable to believe this was the same man who once went head-to-head with his own cheating father for me three years ago.

On our wedding night, he'd given me his bank card and made a promise in front of my late mother's photo. He said he'd love me and protect me for the rest of our lives.

Anna slipped her arm through Zane's, her lashes lowered as the faintest hint of a smile curved her lips.

I'd seen that smile so many times in the pictures of her on Zane's phone.

"Sir." An airport security officer hurried over, slightly out of breath. "We got a complaint that someone was causing trouble over here and stopping a passenger with her luggage."

Zane pointed at me. "It's my wife. She's a bit unstable. She's not doing so well right now. She came to the airport, saw me talking to a friend, and freaked out."

"Ma'am, please don't block the other passengers from getting through," the security guard said.

I swallowed the bitterness and stood up straight, my palms covered in cold sweat. "I have reason to believe that suitcase may contain prohibited items. Please assist me in stopping the person carrying it."

The security guard frowned. "Do you have anything to prove you're authorized to do this?"